


your love is such a mystery

by uwereamazing



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: 5+1 Things, Comfort, Fluff, Healing, M/M, Post-Canon, Tenderness, and all that good shit, andrew and neil just taking care of each other, god they are so in love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-15
Updated: 2019-03-15
Packaged: 2019-11-18 09:03:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18117626
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uwereamazing/pseuds/uwereamazing
Summary: five times the foxes walked in on andreil and the one time they didn’t have to.





	your love is such a mystery

1.

Renee let her eyes roam over the sight of her exhilarated yet exhausted teammates, something like easy contentment settling in her stomach. Tonight they had beat the Breckenridge Jackals, with a final score of 9-4. The win was especially satisfying, considering last year’s brutal match against them.

Nicky and Matt seemed to be performing some choreographed dance routine, while Dan filmed, cheering them on. Kevin was talking in the corner with Coach, a small grin sneaking onto his face when Wymack reached to ruffle his hair.

Renee felt a smile of her own slip onto her face as she set down her gear. There would be time to celebrate with her friends, but for now, she wanted to find Andrew and congratulate him on his performance earlier. She knew Andrew couldn’t care less about the sport himself, but it would never cease to impress her when he completely shutdown the goal like he had done so tonight.

She headed towards the men’s locker room, knowing that Andrew would be there. He generally didn’t like to stick around and celebrate with the team after games, unless Neil roped him into it. Renee hoped she’d given him enough time to shower and change; she had loitered around her teammates for half an hour so she wouldn’t walk in on Andrew in a state of undress, or invade his privacy in any other way.

However, when she came to the doorway Renee had no choice but to stop in her tracks, taking in the sight before her.

Andrew sat on the bench in the centre of the room, still dressed in most of his gear, helmet on the floor beside him. His sweaty curls were plastered to his forehead. Thankfully, he hadn’t looked up at her, as his attention was fully occupied by Neil, who straddled the bench beside him, and was taking off Andrew’s gear with careful hands. Renee studied the two men: the way Andrew’s features had softened, the considering light in his eyes as he tracked Neil’s movements, Neil’s reverent hands as he pulled Andrew’s elbow pads off his arm. It felt like she was witnessing something intensely private.

“You were so good tonight,” Neil murmured, leaning back and watching Andrew with a soft smile. Renee realised with a jolt that his lips seemed red and kiss-bitten, and his hair was rather dishevelled. That explained why they hadn’t showered yet, Renee thought to herself, stifling a laugh.

Andrew just rolled his eyes and got up from the bench. However, Renee noted the way his ears pinked slightly. Neil seemed to notice too, his grin becoming something more teasing.

“I love watching you play.”

“Shut up,” Andrew stood in front of Neil, scowling down at him. “You talk too much.”

“Then make me shut up,” Neil offered playfully.

Andrew slid a hand into Neil’s untidy hair and leant down, meeting Neil’s lips with his own.

Renee finally decided she had intruded on them enough, silently turning to leave. But as she entered the lounge, she couldn’t help but let a small smile curl at her lips.

 

2.

Matt treaded quietly across the dorm, going slowly enough so he wouldn’t drop the tray he was holding. It carried a bowl of chicken soup that Matt intended on not spilling. He nodded at Kevin, who was watching a documentary on the television, before heading into the bedroom.

Earlier, Matt had texted Neil if he wanted to meet him for lunch. He was unnerved by the lightning-quick response, but even more startled when he read the message waiting for him:

 _He_ _can’t_. - _A_

Frowning, Matt thumbed out another message.

 _why_ _not?_

Andrew had replied just as quickly:

 _N_ _caught_ _the_ _flu_.

His instinctive need to protect Neil had made itself known, and before he knew it, Matt was in the tiny dorm-room kitchen texting his mother for her soup recipe.

But now, he stopped at the doorway, rendered momentarily speechless by the sight waiting for him. Neil was curled up in a bundle of blankets, one hand stretched out to intertwine with Andrew’s, who sat beside him on the bed. Neil’s eyes had drifted shut, soft lashes on his freckled cheeks, and a tiny, satisfied smile had graced his slightly clammy face. Andrew’s fingers were gently carding through Neil’s messy hair, his gaze softer, more gentle than Matt had ever seen it. It was only a split-second, but Matt took in every detail, brain scrambling to reevaluate what he thought he knew about Neil and Andrew’s relationship.

Andrew’s gaze drifted up to the doorway, and though he didn’t move away from Neil, his expression shuttered slightly, as if a curtain was closed. Matt felt faintly embarrassed, like he saw something never meant for his eyes, but he soldiered on.

“Sorry, uh- I brought soup?” Matt held up the tray in offering.

“You’re sorry you brought soup?” Andrew stared at Matt. Despite his flat tone, his eyebrow twitched slightly upward.

Matt fumbled around for something to say. Since Dan, Renee and Allison’s graduation, he had spent increasingly more time with the Monsters, until his relationship with Andrew progressed to something like mutual respect. It was a tremulous, fragile thing but Matt treasured it, feeling slightly awed whenever Andrew indulged in conversation with him, like he was doing so now.

“I-“ Matt broke off with a disbelieving laugh. “Sure Andrew, sure.”

Matt crossed the room to give thetray to Andrew, who balanced it on his lap. He glanced down at Neil’s sleeping form once more, noting with surprise that his hand was still clasped in Andrew’s. Perhaps Andrew saw something in Matt’s face, because he squeezed Neil’s scarred hand even tighter in his own, almost defiantly.

Matt dragged his stare away from their intertwined hands to look at Andrew’s blank expression. He cleared his throat.

“Tell Neil the soup’s from me,” Matt told him, half-jokingly, in attempt to fill the silence. Andrew just huffed in what was either amusement or derision — he didn’t quite know.

Matt turned to leave. He was at the doorway when he heard a gruff “Thanks.”

He turned back to see Andrew staring fixedly at the carpet, ignoring his gaze.

“No problem,” Matt instinctively replied, despite feeling incredibly astonished, for what felt like the millionth time since entering that room.

He left the bedroom, nodding at Kevin once more as he crossed the dorm. He slipped into his own room, feeling slightly off balance, but registering something like satisfaction warming his chest.

 

3.

Aaron scowled at his phone. Josten still hadn’t replied to his text. They were supposed to be meeting at the library for their weekly tutoring session, but instead, Aaron was storming to Neil’s dorm because he was a forgetful idiot who never turned his phone on.

Gritting his teeth and asking Neil for help with his statistics class was possibly the most shameful experience of Aaron’s life. Neil’s smug “Oh, really?” had made Aaron shove his hands roughly into his pockets to avoid punching the shit-eating grin off Neil’s stupid, scarred face.

But Aaron was getting desperate. He knew Neil was majoring in math and that most of the foxes considered him to be some sort of mathematical genius. On top of that, Katelyn thought it’d be good for him to spend more time with the idiot. “Traitor,” he had called her. But she just smirked, and how could Aaron say no when she looked at him like that?

Now more than a month into their arrangement, Aaron could grudgingly admit he was glad he went to Neil, who was a surprisingly competent teacher. Aaron, though he would never say it out loud, began somewhat enjoying himself, exchanging insults and snide remarks with the idiot. Once they settled into their routine, Katelyn had joined them occasionally, and one time, Andrew, who silently worked on a paper (though he rolled his eyes whenever Aaron or Neil came up with a particularly terrible insult).

He finally reached their dorm, finding the lounge empty. Neil’s running shoes were against the wall, socks stuffed haphazardly into them. Aaron made a disgusted face and strode across the dorm to the bedroom. He began to turn the doorknob but stopped himself.

Aaron turned his head to press an ear against the door.

“God, please don’t be fucking,” he whispered. But he was met with complete silence.

Deciding it was safe, he opened the door. He peered into the dimly lit room until his eyes found two distinctly Andrew and Neil shaped figures sleeping in bed. Aaron wrinkled his nose.

A whisper of the old disgust he used to feel reared its ugly head, but Aaron brushed it away; he was better than that now (Bee and Katelyn wouldn’t want him thinking those thoughts). Instead, he looked at them. Josten sleeping peacefully, blessedly quiet for once, head nestled on Andrew’s chest. Andrew’s arm wrapped around him, face buried in Neil’s untidy hair. He noted how relaxed his brother’s posture was, the content smile on Neil’s face, how easily they were melted together.

Aaron was shaken out of his thoughts by the sudden distraction of Neil stirring. Neil lifted his head languidly to meet Aaron’s eyes.

“Hm- oh, it’s you,” Neil’s eyes drifted back shut and his head returned to its place on Andrew’s chest.

“But—“

“Shhh,” Neil mumbled.

“Josten—“ Aaron broke off. Andrew, who apparently was not sleeping, had lifted his hand to flip him off, though his face remained pressed against Neil’s hair. Aaron gladly took that as his cue to leave.

“Whatever,” He huffed, stalking out of the room.

—

Neil Josten: _Hope_ _we_ _didn’t_ _offend_   _your_ _delicate_ _heterosexual_ _sensibilities_. _Meet_ _at_ _the_ _library @_ _4?_ _I’ll_ _bring_ _my_ _textbooks_

Aaron Minyard: _You_ _are_ _the_ _worst_ _person_ _I_ _have_ _ever_ _had_ _the_ _displeasure_ _of_ _knowing_

Aaron Minyard: _I’ll_ _be_ _there_

 

4.

Kevin blinked awake with a jerk. His sleep had been scattered with confusing, muddled dreams. Again. He sighed shakily into the darkness and heard the gentle whirring of the fan above him. Kevin listened to it’s comforting rhythm, concentrating on slowing down his erratic heart rate.

Once he felt less disoriented, he reached over to turn on his phone. He squinted at it, the screen too bright in the pitch-black of the room. It was 4:11 am.

Kevin scrubbed his face tiredly. He usually never woke this early on Saturdays, but since attempting to become sober, it seemed to be a frequent occurrence. Probably because he was no longer sleeping off a hangover way into the afternoon, Kevin thought to himself wryly.

He crawled out of bed, shivering slightly in the cool air. His USC Trojan’s hoodie hung on the door, so he tugged it on before slipping out of the bedroom.

Kevin had barely taken a step before he came to a stop. Moonlight filtered weakly through the windows, illuminating Andrew and Neil where they sat on the couch. Kevin held himself completely still, not wanting to alert them of his presence.

Andrew sat at one end of the couch, head bowed, staring at his hands. His posture was rigid, tense. Neil faced him, his gaze steady. He was murmuring softly to Andrew.

“Do you want me to leave?” Neil’s voice was quiet but unwavering. Kevin noticed the careful distance Neil had put between them, his considerate expression as he watched Andrew, feeling something tug at his chest.

The silence stretched on for a few endless moments. Kevin thought Andrew either hadn’t heard him, too caught up in the nightmare that had woken him, or he had simply elected to ignore Neil.

“Stay,” Andrew finally spoke, voice gravelly.

Neil watched Andrew for a second before nodding. “Okay.”

His hand rifled around in the couch for the remote, passing it over to Andrew once he had located it.

“Pick something to watch, I’ll get us some ice cream.”

Neil stood and turned towards the kitchen but Andrew grabbed his wrist, stopping him. Neil looked at him with a raised brow.

“Yes or no?” Andrew muttered.

“Yes,” Neil said instantly. His eyes roamed over Andrew’s face. ‘But are you sure?”

Andrew nodded. Neil searched his expression once more, before deciding he was satisfied with what he found. Sliding his hands into the pockets of his hoodie, he bent over Andrew, who still sat on the couch. Andrew gripped Neil’s collar and closed the distance between them, pressing his lips to Neil’s in a soft kiss. A thank you of sorts, maybe.

The tension slowly bled out of Andrew’s posture as they kissed, and he sighed as they broke apart. He brought a hand up to cup Neil’s cheek gently. Neil’s lashes fluttered shut for a second before he turned to press a kiss into Andrew’s palm.

“I’ll be right back, okay?” He murmured. Andrew nodded, dropping his hand. Neil headed to the kitchen as Andrew reached for the remote, settling back into the couch.

Kevin silently crept back into the bedroom. Holding his breath, he closed the door gently behind him and crawled back into bed. He considered what he had just witnessed. Though he spent most of his time with Andrew and Neil, which meant occasionally having a fleeting glimpse into their relationship, he had never seen them so tender and affectionate with each other.

Kevin realised belatedly that he was happy for both of them. Happy that they were learning to heal together. It was a curious feeling, but he liked it.

He curled up comfortably under his sheets and let his eyes drift closed. Kevin decided he could afford to stay in bed for a few more hours and let Andrew and Neil have their space. He had intruded on them enough.

 

5.

Nicky took the stairs two at a time, humming to happily himself. It was finally summer. The air was pleasantly warm and sweet-smelling, and sunlight streamed through the windows onto the wooden floorboards of the house. They were staying in Colombia for a few days before heading their separate ways: Kevin was road-tripping with Wymack and Abby, Aaron was spending time with Katelyn’s family, Andrew and Neil were heading to Colorado and Nicky was flying to Germany to see Erik. Thinking about the rest of his summer made warmth blossom in his chest.

He reached the bottom of the staircase and took a breath in, smelling coffee. Someone must already be up. Probably Kevin, Nicky thought to himself idly. He nearly rounded the corner but stopped when he heard a warm laugh.

“Someone’s clingy this morning,” came Neil’s amused voice. Nicky could picture the raised brow and the slight curve of a smirk.

“I’m tired because you woke me up at the crack of dawn to go running,” said Andrew’s muffled voice. “This is on you.”

Neil hummed in consideration. “Then maybe I should make you go running more often.”

“Go ahead, Josten. You’ll end up with a knife in your gut.” Andrew’s tone lacked any seriousness but Nicky still made a face. God, was that how they flirted?

But Neil let out a choked laugh in response. Huh. Nicky supposed it worked for them. Before he could back down, he cleared his throat and entered the kitchen. But he couldn’t help the involuntary squeak that exited his throat as he took in the sight that waited for him.

Neil stood by the sink, fixing some coffee for the two of them. He was wearing a loose black shirt, his hair damp and a darker shade of red from his shower. However, Andrew was clinging to Neil from behind, arms wrapped tightly around his midriff. His face was tucked into the nape of Neil’s neck, hair also damp and curling around his ears. Nicky couldn’t help but feel struck by the utter domesticity of the scene, restraining the urge to coo over them.

“Morning,” Nicky tried to sound easy going. Both Andrew and Neil’s gazes snapped over to him. He attempted casually putting hands in his pockets before remembering he didn’t have any. Inwardly cursing himself, he affected an award-winning smile.

“Nicky,” Neil greeted him, sounding only slightly weirded out. His cheeks had pinked slightly, but neither he nor Andrew moved away from each other. Instead, Andrew’s arms had tightened infinitesimally around Neil’s waist. Nicky had to admit that was too cute.

He looked at them more closely and realised with a jolt that Neil was wearing one of Andrew’s shirts. _God,_ _that’s_ _adorable_ , Nicky thought to himself. It was a little too big on him, exposing his collarbones and some old scar tissue on his chest. 

“Um. I’m gonna head out and get breakfast,” Nicky randomly decided on the spot, feeling his composure beginning to slip. “Have a gay day. Great. Uh- have a great day, guys!”

Nicky fled the kitchen as quickly as possible, but not before he heard Andrew deadpan “I wonder what’s gotten into him?” and Neil’s answering snort.

 

+1

Neil leaned against the window, watching Andrew as he drove. It was getting dark, a few flickering stars starting to appear in the sky. Thick pine trees surrounded them, on either side of the long, empty road that led back to the cabin they were sharing with the foxes.

They had spent the afternoon alone, wandering aimlessly through the nearby town, occasionally stopping at various bookstores or bakeries. Neil was currently holding a box of sweet pastries that Andrew insisted on buying. It had been a good day.

“Staring,” Andrew’s jaw clenched, though he never lifted his eyes from the road. He took a hand off the wheel and set it down between them, offering his palm to Neil.

Neil hummed in agreement, reaching out to let his fingers intertwine with Andrew’s. “How did you know?”

His eyes traced Andrew’s bicep, the sure grip of his hand on the steering wheel, his strong jawline. Everything. He let his gaze wander, wishing he had Andrew’s memory so he could keep every detail of this moment to himself forever.

“I know you, Josten,” Andrew answered simply. Neil shivered, as warmth began to pool inside him. The car suddenly felt too small.

“Yeah,” Neil squeezed Andrew’s hand. He couldn’t hold back his smile, watching Andrew’s focused gaze on the road ahead of them. “You do.”

When Andrew parked the Maserati outside the cabin, Neil got out of the car instantly, burning up with need. Andrew seemed to to notice the state Neil was in, shutting the car door and directing a raised brow at him. Neil rolled his eyes in response.

Silently, they headed up the wooden stairs to the cabin, Andrew stopping when they reached the door. But instead of getting the key out, he faced Neil and tugged the pastries gently out of his hands, setting it on the floor.

“Andrew—“ 

“Yes or no?” Andrew’s gaze darted over Neil’s face. Though his tone was bored, the interest in his hazel eyes was unmistakeable. Neil’s knees felt weak.

“Yes,” Neil murmured quietly, moving closer to Andrew until he could count his delicate lashes if he wanted to.

Andrew closed the distance between them, bringing up a gentle hand to cup Neil’s jaw. Neil let out something like a whimper that he would have been embarrassed by if his attention wasn’t solely focused on Andrew’s slow, maddening kisses. Andrew pushed him backwards until he was pressed against the door, coaxing Neil’s lips open with his clever tongue.

If he were capable of producing coherent thoughts, Neil would have marvelled at the fact that even after years of being together, Andrew’s kisses still had the ability to reduce him to a useless lump. Neil vaguely acknowledged that he was grateful for Andrew’s strong hands holding him up.

Neil felt Andrew searching his pockets before he heard the jangling of keys. He pressed a final, hard kiss to Andrew’s lips, then one to his neck, grinning at the shiver he received.

“Shut up,” Andrew grumbled, though the full effect of his glower was rather diminished by his flushed cheeks and dishevelled curls. Neil’s heart clenched. 

“Didn’t say anything,” Neil’s grin became teasing.

“You’re horrible,” Andrew muttered as he opened the door.

Neil was expecting Andrew to go inside but instead, he lifted Neil, gathering him up into his arms. _Oh_ , thought Neil dazedly. He wrapped his legs around Andrew’s waist, feeling weak at his impossible strength. Neil’s eyes fluttered shut as he twined his arms around Andrew’s neck to press their lips together once more.

He smiled against Andrew’s mouth as he walked them inside, causing a nip at his bottom lip in response. Neil pulled away breathlessly, but his eyes instantly zeroed in on Andrew’s lush, kiss-swollen lips, and with a little helpless noise, he was leaning in again—

“What the actual, literal fuck is happening right now?”

Andrew and Neil froze. _Fuck_. Neil’s face burned with mortification. He turned to see the foxes spread out along the couch, staring wide-eyed at them with varying looks of absolute bewilderment, awe (Matt) and delight (Allison).

“God, what the fuck?” Aaron repeated, whispering to himself as he buried his face in his hands. 

“Did I imagine that? Am I dead?” Matt frantically looked around at the others, but they were all rendered completely speechless. “Guys, help me out. Am I dead?”

“Yes,” Aaron voice was muffled by his hands. “‘Cause this must be hell.”

At this point, Nicky slid off the couch and onto the floor, too overcome to form words. 

“I feel you, babe,” Allison’s grin was shit-eating. Renee’s lips twitched.

“Andrew,” Neil’s cheeks were flaming. “Um, could you maybe let me down?”

Andrew placed him down none-too-gently. His cool expression betrayed nothing but Neil saw the tension in his posture and the grit of his jaw.

“So,” Neil began awkwardly. “I thought you guys were out.”

“Clearly,” Kevin deadpanned. Allison snorted.

“We were,” Dan began apologetically. “But then we decided to eat dinner here and watch a movie. I texted you?”

Neil fished his phone out of his pocket and attempted turning it on. It was dead.

“No surprises there,” Aaron muttered.

“Okay, well,” Neil trailed off, unsure of what to say.

He was keenly aware of all the foxes staring at him. _God,_ his cheeks were still burning. The seconds ticked by, long and excruciating. 

“Um.” Neil said eloquently.

“We’re going,” Andrew suddenly interjected, patience finally at its end. He grabbed Neil’s hand and dragged him away. Neil came willingly, feeling weak with relief.

Neil heard his teammates instantly burst into rapid conversation the moment they were out of sight. As they entered their bedroom, he registered Allison’s gleeful cackle, as well as Nicky and Matt’s enthusiastic shrieks, followed by the rest of the foxes shushing collectively. 

Andrew rolled his eyes as he closed the door with more force than was strictly necessary.Neil bee-lined for the bed and flopped face-down on top of it, insides feeling hot with embarrassment. 

“I never want to see any of them again,” Neil groaned, voice muffled against the sheets. 

Andrew just sighed, joining him on the bed. “Drama queen.”

—

27 minutes later, they were curled up together watching a show when Neil realised something very, very bad. He jolted, turning to look at Andrew in abject horror.

“Andrew.”

“What, Neil?”

“The pastries. We left them outside.” 

“... Well, _fuck_.”

**Author's Note:**

> andrew and neil ended up doing rock paper scissors to choose who had to face the others and retrieve their prized pastries adhsjhdsk
> 
> anyway. HELLO ladies and gays. welcome to my first aftg fic. yes, this was very self-indulgent and yes, i included a lot of my personal fave hcs but am i sorry? certainly not
> 
> major disclaimer: i am not a writer. like at all. but i love these characters w my whole ass heart and i have a lot of feelings abt them so i wrote this anyway. if you want, pls leave your kudos and comments. was this good? bad? weird? funky? let me know!
> 
> also follow me on tumblr at my newly made aftg sideblog @rikohateclub ! after months of obsessing over the series i finally gave in and made a blog 🤠


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